Borehole and the Beast: Visions of a World without Smokestacks

December 3, 20076:41 PM ET

Win Rosenfeld

Scientists at the Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory in New York have been pumping hundreds of gallons of a chemical solution down a thousand-foot-deep hole, smack dab in middle of their campus. Although these chemicals are harmless, the scientists here are interested in finding out if dangerous carbon emissions could be stored safely underground given the right conditions. Dr. Juerg Matter, a member of this "Borehole" team, thinks that if this experiment turns out just right, it could mean a great deal about how we'll handle environmental hazards in the future.